Category Archives: Make a Difference

Projects that are making a difference, improving lives, and building communities.

Black-Jewish Dialogue: February 2022

February 1, 2022 Editor-in-Chief

History R Us!

Hear this very personal look at history from both an African-American and Jewish perspective. Don’t miss this amazing online discussion.
Scroll down for the link.

KEN GRANDERSON

In 1992, Ken Granderson, a graduate of MIT, launched his first software development company Inner-City Software, Brains in the Hood. He was committed to closing the Digital Divide by creating technology products and solutions by & for people of African descent. For a decade, he introduced Boston’s communities of color to computers and the Internet, giving local organizations and Boston’s Black newspaper an online world-class presence. Moving back to New York City, he was born in the Bedford Stuyvesant section of Brooklyn, his achievements in technical design, education, and empowerment are nationally and internationally impressive. His website, BLACKFACTS, is an affiliate of the ADR. (CLICK to access)

DEBORAH LEVINE

Deborah coordinated the 1990 National Workshop on Christian Jewish RelationsIn and created her first Holocaust video in Rockford, Illinois, where she served as of the Jewish Federation’s executive director . She went on to become the Community & Media Liaison of the Tulsa Jewish Federation shortly after the OK City bombing and is the former exec. director of Chattanooga’s Jewish Federation. She carries on the work of her father who became the CFO of the American Jewish Archives. He served as a US military intelligence officer during World War II assigned to interrogate Nazi prisoners of war. CLICK for more information about her memoir, The Liberator’s Daughter, and to hear an interview with her father about his wartime experiences.

CLICK TO HEAR DIALOGUE

Dialogue Partners:
American Diversity Report, Chattanooga News Chronicle, Mizpah Congregation, Jewish Federation of Greater Chattanooga, C.U.R.B. – Citizens Uprooting Racism in Bermuda.

Authors A-H, Education

Diversity and Speech No. 27: Training Future Psychologists Using the Lens of History – by Carlos E. Cortés, Marjorie Graham-Howard

January 31, 2022 Carlos Cortes, Marjorie Graham-Howard

A Co-Authored Interview

Carlos: Marjorie, as a historian, I was blown away by the richness of your class syllabus. How did you come up with the idea of using history to ground a clinical psychology course?

Marjorie: I was a history major in college, so I have always loved it. I remember when I first discovered that history is not just facts about wars and dead people, but was an interpretation of past events. Then I began to learn that most history was controlled by those with power and privilege, which meant there were those whose voices were silenced or never heard from. I knew it would be important for therapists. Once I began teaching at Azusa Pacific University, I found that students were often overwhelmed when working with older adults and clients from a different historical era. They did not know their history, which became a barrier to providing effective treatment. We decided to add a class to close this gap.

Continue reading Diversity and Speech No. 27: Training Future Psychologists Using the Lens of History – by Carlos E. Cortés, Marjorie Graham-Howard →

Authors A-H, Politics

Alas, poor Mitch – by Terry Howard

January 25, 2022 Terry Howard 1 Comment

“Hold up! Did Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell say what I thought he said?” rhetorically asked columnist Jonathan Capehart.

Well, yes, Jonathan, your ears didn’t lie. You heard what you heard. And if you are any person of color, neither did it come as a surprise.
Now as much as I’d like to cut McConnell some slack because of his “caught with his pants down” moment, I couldn’t resist the opportunity. In case you missed it, here is what he said when asked about concerns about voter participation by African Americans:

Continue reading Alas, poor Mitch – by Terry Howard →

Black-Jewish Dialogue

Black-Jewish Dialogue – January 2022

December 17, 2021 Editor-in-Chief

Media and Community

Hear the online dialogue between two television / media experts discuss their ties to their respective communities, how they’re shaped by them, and how they report stories about them.
* Scroll down for the link. *

LaTrice LaTrice Currie is a native Tennessean who graduated from Hampton U. LaTrice joined Chattanooga’s Channel 3 Eyewitness News in 1995. She now co-anchors news at noon and 5:30 and also serves as Eye On Health Reporter and host of Trends on 3.

LaTrice’s awards include Chattanooga Woman of Distinction, Hamilton County Outstanding Citizen, Black Excellence Chattanooga “Best Media Personality,” Times Free Press “Best Chattanoogan, and NAACP Image Awards. She serves as ambassador for Go Red For Women and on various boards: Moccasin Bend Girl Scout Council, Big Brothers Big Sisters of Chattanooga, advisory board for Volunteers in Medicine, and Partnership for Families, Children, and Adults.

Ilene Gould is a photographer, writer, illustrator and full time news producer for NewsChannel9 in Chattanooga where she has produced every show from mornings, to dayside evening shows, to nightside. She also co-produced an hour long Town Hall called “Changing Chattanooga”. Ilene is a Michigan State Graduate with a degree in Media and Information, a concentration in Film and Video Production, and minors in Fiction Filmmaking and Music.

Ilene also works part-time as Community Manager at Better Sax, where saxophonist Jay Metcalf teaches and creates online lessons to learn to play the saxophone by ear.

CLICK TO HEAR DIALOGUE

Dialogue Partners:
American Diversity Report, Chattanooga News Chronicle, Mizpah Congregation, Jewish Federation of Greater Chattanooga, C.U.R.B. – Citizens Uprooting Racism in Bermuda

Black-Jewish Dialogue

Black-Jewish Dialogue December 2021

December 3, 2021 Editor-in-Chief

Let there be music!

Be inspired! Hear these two creative souls who share a love of music from their respective religions.
Scroll down for the link to the recording.

music

Melvin Kindall Myles is a Mississippi native, born and raised in the Delta area of Clarksdale, MS; known as the birthplace of the blues. He is a Soulful Christian and Jazz Vocalist now based in Atlanta, GA where you will find him regularly serving in the Worship and Arts Ministry of the Historic Ebenezer Baptist Church, the former pulpit of MLK Jr.

Rabbii

Rabbi Micah Lapidu works at The Alfred & Adele Davis Academy, a Reform Jewish Day School. He’s also a songwriter and composer of Jewish and spiritual music including four albums: Be a Blessing (2013), A Palace in Time (2015), Eit HaZamir (2016), and Menschology (2017). His music has been sung & performed at Jewish organizations around North America and Israel and in several churches including Atlanta’s Historic Ebenezer Baptist Church.

CLICK to hear December Black-Jewish Dialogue

Dialogue Partners:
American Diversity Report, Chattanooga News Chronicle, Mizpah Congregation, Jewish Federation of Greater Chattanooga, C.U.R.B. – Citizens Uprooting Racism in Bermuda.

Religious Diversity Kit, UTC Interns

Religious Diversity In Corporate America – by Meg Eslinger, Vivian Schlabritz

December 1, 2021 Meg Eslinger, Vivian Schlabritz

Editor’s Note: Article from DEI in Communications class at the University of TN / Chattanooga where I spoke on religious diversity.

Corporate America makes up nearly 45 percent of American employees. Each of those employees represent diversity in some form or fashion, representing an array of languages, cultures, classes, and religions. With these diverse aspects comes considering dealing with differences between employers, co-workers, CEO’s, etc. Religious Diversity seems to have the most significance when it comes to conflict or dealing with strategic communication. Religious Diversity plays an essential role in Corporate America, especially today in the age of Social Media and the public seeing what corporations are “all about.”

How a big corporation such as Delta, Nike, Target, Verizon, etc promotes being accepting of religion, no matter what religion, is essential from a Public Relations standpoint. Yes, they might look good on the outside to the public for consumer satisfaction and revenue, but it’s not always equally reflected within these corporations. Religion is defined by Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) by saying; “Religion is not limited to traditional, organized religions, but also includes religious beliefs that are practiced by a small group of people and are not part of a formal church or sect.” (SHRM 2008) Religious diversity really shows itself with respect in how employers handle accommodating time off for religious holidays. According to most corporate Human Resource Managers, they report they work with ”most” religious holidays meaning Easter, Thanksgiving, Christmas etc- and not including holidays such as Diwali, Yom Kippur, Ramadan, etc.

Continue reading Religious Diversity In Corporate America – by Meg Eslinger, Vivian Schlabritz →

Religious Diversity Kit, UTC Interns

The New Business of Church – by Justin Glover

December 1, 2021 Justin Glover

Editor’s Note: Article from DEI in Communications class at the University of TN / Chattanooga where I spoke on religious diversity.

When discussing the idea of someone’s religious ideals and upbringings, it is important to treat these topics with the utmost respect. However, the church you may attend is much more than a business than you might expect. Religion is a $1.2 trillion dollar industry, and yes that is trillion. This can ultimately bring into question the character of those who operate these businesses. Does this mean that these establishments are ultimately trying to trick or confuse those who attend? Not necessarily, but it is shallow to operate behind closed curtains much like many church business markets.

It is also important to break down the similarities with a business and a church. The church offers a public speaking attendance for its viewers and does things such as play music. These things are often services that require payment to attend. Concerts and motivational speakers do not often offer the contents within their acts to the public for free. According to the Theology of Business Institute, annual collections for churches averaging 162 attendees is just south of $215,000. It is important to note as well that a church is a legal entity. They employ a group of people at each general location across the country and strive to ignite the community. If a church is operating for a long period of time, it is safe to assume that they are generating a profit.

Continue reading The New Business of Church – by Justin Glover →

Religious Diversity Kit, UTC Interns

Are Advertising Companies Making Changes – by Jessalee West, Taralyn Wiley, Caroline Coppock

December 1, 2021 Jessalee West, Taralyn Wiley, Caroline Coppock

Editor’s Note: Article from DEI in Communications class at the University of TN / Chattanooga where I spoke on religious diversity.

Many aspects of communication have changed over the years to become for the most part more inclusive. However, one part that seems to be falling a bit behind all the others is the inclusion of religious diversity. This topic is not one that is discussed a great deal when thinking about advertising, branding, or marketing. There is a lot of discussion about racial inclusion as well as gender inclusion, but the religious aspect does not get as much attention. This idea seems to be changing a bit at a time, especially with companies such as Apple, Facebook, and Google.

Advertising is a big part of media and communications, however there is not a lot of religious talk in regard to what is included in advertisements. It is not one of their main focuses within many companies when researching and determining what will generate the most success for their advertisements. When dealing with religious holidays it is taken into consideration that some things should be included, such as when dealing with Easter and Christmas, however there is rarely any research done into how best to reach those religious minorities. It is considered a general rule in advertising to not use generic religious symbols that could somehow offend a person of that religious affiliation. And while this is a good step there is work to be done in regards to making advertising a religiously inclusive part of marketing and communications. There are some companies who are making good progress in the right direction, such as Facebook.

Continue reading Are Advertising Companies Making Changes – by Jessalee West, Taralyn Wiley, Caroline Coppock →

History R Us!

Dialogue Partners: American Diversity Report, Chattanooga News Chronicle, Mizpah Congregation, Jewish Federation of Greater Chattanooga, C.U.R.B. – Citizens Uprooting Racism in Bermuda.

How will India respond in 2022 to this regressive stance towards women?

Media and Community

Dialogue Partners: American Diversity Report, Chattanooga News Chronicle, Mizpah Congregation, Jewish Federation of Greater Chattanooga, C.U.R.B. – Citizens Uprooting Racism in Bermuda

Let there be music!

Dialogue Partners: American Diversity Report, Chattanooga News Chronicle, Mizpah Congregation, Jewish Federation of Greater Chattanooga, C.U.R.B. – Citizens Uprooting Racism in Bermuda.

INSPIRE & INSTRUCT

Dialogue Partners:
American Diversity Report, Chattanooga News Chronicle, Mizpah Congregation, Jewish Federation of Greater Chattanooga, C.U.R.B. – Citizens Uprooting Racism in Bermuda.

Dialogue Partners:
American Diversity Report, Chattanooga News Chronicle, Mizpah Congregation, Jewish Federation of Greater Chattanooga, C.U.R.B. – Citizens Uprooting Racism in Bermuda

Dialogue Partners:
American Diversity Report, Chattanooga News Chronicle, Mizpah Congregation, Jewish Federation of Greater Chattanooga, C.U.R.B. – Citizens Uprooting Racism in Bermuda.